Arachnea
Arachnea is a Zarosian Mahjarrat roleplayed by QueenArasene on W42. The History sections are only for the very interested, due to their lenght. History Freneskrae The beginning Freneskae was a place of great terror, great power and much destruction and war. Here, Arachnea was born into a nomadic family of mahjarrat. She grew fast, for she had to, and learned everything she could to survive. The times were hard, but each day she survived gave her more knowledge, new powers and more often than not, new wounds to nurse. But she conquered each day like Alexander the Great conquered much of the world and grew in power, knowledge, wisdom and scars. When she was of appropriate age, Arachnea was married to a suitable man, a mahjarrat of great promise called Dyluneris. They weren't too fond of each other at first, it being an arranged marriage, but in time they became not only good friends, but a wonderful couple. Over the course of the next five hundred years, Arachnea bore three children. Z'Tubra, the firstborn, was a healthy child and the greatest pride Arachnea had for several decades later. Aylya, her second child, was stillborn. A sad time came, but as yet another war shook the realm of Freneskrae, Arachnea never got to mourn her second child properly. In time, her third, and so far last, child saw the light: Her first boy. Dyluneris, her husband, was overjoyed over having a proper heir. "Rochnir!", he called the baby as he held it triumphantly up before the assembled tribe. A thunder underlined this statement. Z'Tubra was old enough to not be jealous of Rochnir as his father spoiled him quite badly. Arachnea arranged for her daughter to meet suitable suitors, and got her into a nice arrangement after three decades of arguing. Rochnir was also married, but he developed a sad habit of sleeping around, a lasting effect from being spoiled by his father. This was also the cause for the next large war Arachnea became involved in. Rochnir had gone a step too far with a young female from another tribe called the Harri Ezarri, and they descended upon Arachnea's clan not long after she had become pregnant for the fourth time. The fights were often long and bloody. In the first two, several of Rochnir's bastard children died. The third and final battle was the worst ever. It raged for two and a half weeks, and claimed Dyluneris, Z'Tubra, Rochnir himself, Arachnea's parents and almost all others of the tribe. Arachnea, already badly injured, was one of the few to escape the battlefield alive. Her pregnancy, she was sure beyond doubt, was no more. The only survivors she found among the dead were Amyina, Wyd, Ny'kal, Yet'nit and Xevoy. With them, she made her way away, far away from the blasted county where their beloved laid still under the glowing sun of Freneskrae. Ny'Kal was lost under the journey, defending the small group from one of Freneskrae's scariest beasts. Yet'nit was heartbroken as Arachnea and Xevoy tugged her onward, away from the predestined battle. Back to the start Almost two decades later, they ended up in the same spot where their foes and family had fallen, pitched in a senseless battle about nothing more than an ignorant young boy. They looked for the remnants of their loved ones and buried what they found. Then they erected a memorial stone to the senseless slaughter between tribes. As their magic converged over the memorial to preserve it, the ambush was sprung. Their old enemy tribe had never forgotten the war, and still hated them for slaying their leader in the last battle. It was not much of a battle, and Arachnea's family were captured within minutes. Xevoy was the last one still standing and took the most injuries. While the other tribe discussed what to do with the "murderers", Arachnea and Yet'nit did their very best to keep the badly maimed Xevoy alive. Amyina and Wyd listened to what their captors were talking about, concern and fear mirroring on their faces. After a particularly loud round of laughing, they crept to the two self-proclaimed nurses. "They want to torture us!" Arachnea could see it in Wyd's face, the girl would die of fright before it ever got that far. "They won't. We will escape before that happens." The authority in her grandmother's voice calmed the young female, and they went back to listening what the other tribe intended to do with them. Meanwhile, Arachnea conferred quietly with Yet'nit and Xevoy as to what was to do. Digging a tunnel was possible, but it would take too long. Xevoy was the one who, despite his half-unconcious state, came up with a plan that was likely to work. "You don't need to sacrifice yourself, dear. We can find a way out and you will be fine", Yet'nit and Arachnea tried to assure him, but Xevoy believed this was the only chance and he did not trust in their doubtful reassurance that he would survive. With grim faces, they gathered around him, as he left himself to the void, his power flowing into the assembled remains of his family. When the blast was over, they knew they had to act fast. Yet'nit and Arachnea looked at each other for a mere moment, then they nodded in agreement. The prison was easily taken apart with their renewed powers and the four stepped into the momentary silence. Moments later, hell broke loose as their captors descended upon - just Arachnea? Indeed - Yet'nit, Amyina and Wyd had fled as fast as their physique and magic would allow them. Arachnea had stayed behind to cover their backs - she counted as the weakest link. Amyina and Wyd were young and aspiring to a great future, while Yet'nit was the absolutely most knowledgable group member. Arachnea herself was the most average one of the four, so she laid down her life for the three others by unspoken consent with her aunt. Empowered as she was by Xevoy's sacrifice, Arachnea was a formidable opponent even to a small group of enemies. Yet she knew as well as the ones she fought that her boost was but a temporary one, and that they were far too many for her to escape. So be it, then. She thought to herself, before throwing down her staff, breaking it. "I surrender, suckers!" Knowing this move, the opposing force immediately moved to knock her out. Arachnea had anticipated this and taken several precautions. The blows to her head were by far not as fatal as they could have been. When Arachnea woke up again, her head was pounding. She also appeared to be tied securely to a slate, or maybe a table, apparently made from marble. Above her was a canopy, possibly a tent. Struggling against her bounds was useless, she quickly found, so she calmed herself as best she could, conservating strenght for later, in case she was able to escape her imprisonment. Magic seemed useless while on the slate; she had tried it against her headache, so it was safe to assume that her magic wouldn't work on anything else either. Nothing to do but stay still and wait for the inevitable. Lying on a table for hours on end is a punishment in itself. You are not only exposed to everything - you also lose track of everything around you. I do not even know when it is now. How long since I was "caught"? Have my kin escaped or did my captors catch up to them after all? What exactly is their plan for me now? Will it be ritual sacrifice? Torture? Neverending pain? Sudden, painful death? Direct bodily humiliation? Wait- I can hear steps now is the time that I find out...... And then they appeared in the corner of her vision. Masked faces even though they must know that she knew who they were. What came next would have been a war of stares, if Arachnea had been able to look nay of them directly in the eyes. The way she was tied up only allowed her to catch looks from the outmost corners of her eyes. Finally, her annoyance broke through. "Just start already, whatever you are going to do!" As soon as the words had left her cracked lips, she knew she was going to regret them. She closed her eyes, anticipating the backlash. They waited her out, she knew they did, and struck just when she almost relaxed again. Blinding light emitted from where their hands must be, and then.... Pain. Pain is everywhere. The world is a flash of bright light, so bright it hurts my eyes, burning them into my head. Time has no meaning, consumed too quickly by the pain to be observed. My senses are sharpened by the pain, only to become aware of more pain. An agony like no other, worse than when they ripped my family out of my heart. If there are screams, they are mine. I cannot hear them through the torment, but neither should I be able to scream through the daze of anguish. Impossibly, the pain grows, ripping through every fibre of my body, which should be charred to ashes by now. Body? There is none anymore - merely the pain. Me and the pain, forever fused together in a neverending instance of agony. ' '' '' ''Through the daze of pain comes a moment, a mere flash of awareness, of impossible clarity. What I was, I am no more. The moment is gone, time has moved on. Unnoticable through the pain, yet irrevocably true. The world has unraveled before me, destroying my old self and instantly reshaping it from the sharp shards. I am renewed, reborn, recreated. My powers return to me as time resumes and the pain falters, ever so lightly. Limbs tingling, smarting and burning as I fought to find my lungs and force them to draw breath through my throat, raw from my own screams which I never heard. The captors had warily taken a step back. Most likely they expected Arachnea to explode now, from the immense magical overload and the thousands of different spells that had been laid unto her. Their expectations were appropriately rewarded when a blast originating from the prisoner's bench sent them tumbling, spreading dust, confusion and a good deal of destruction throughout the camp. When they sat up again, Arachnea was free. Standing in the crater where her torture bench had lain, free of bounds, and with a look in her eyes that promised certain death to everyone in the vicinity. A second look from those who dared brought forth even more fear. Death was not the thing that stood in those eyes, it was revenge. A yearning, a rage for revenge so all-consuming that nothing short of death or the complete annihilation of the object her rage was directed at would stop it. This in mind, they fled. Scattering like frightened puppies, as the vengeful mother, wife and daughter descended upon them, a trinity united to destroy. Several of her captors were slain before they realized that to stand a chance, they had to gang up on her once more. A momentary standstill emerged as the two parties stood on the battlefield of so many years ago once more, ready for mortal combat. On one side, Arachnea, who was completely out of bounds, yet so focused that no distraction could reach her. On the other, the assembled murderers of her family, united to murder her too. The Battle began A gigantic fireball emerged from the ranks of her capturers. Arachnea stood still until it had almost reached her, at which point she move her hand ever so slightly - and the fireball rebounded from a shield made from one of Freneskrae's most rare substances. The shield was scantly half an inch thick, as it floated in front of her. With a flickering motion, she sent it at her former captors, several of them being sliced in half before they got away. As the shield was gone, Arachnea started to bombard them with all the most powerful spells within her arsenal. Screaming, burning shapes fell to the ground all around, until only one was left, their leader. He laid on the ground, smoking slightly. "You...." he started, but then Arachnea had him by the throat. With crippling force, she slammed him into the rock again, pinning his limbs to the barren earth with magical barriers. Curling her right hand into a fist, she slammed it into his chest once, twice, three times, each strike becoming more powerful. At the third strike, the one who had had so many of her family killed, screamed of all his heart as Arachnea felt she had broken through his chest. Fingers stretched out, she bored her hand through his weakening flesh, accompanied by his screaming. Her hand closed, tugged, and brought out .... the streaming, glinting, bloody heart of what seemed to have been her ultimate foe. She held it up victoriously, proclaiming her conquest. Then she fell to the ground amidst the smoking bodies of her enemies, drained of all energy. When she woke again the light fell into her eyes, which had sunken deep into her skull. Around her was the carnage she vaguely remembered causing with her own hands. Slowly, ever so slowly, she crawled forward. In the light of the setting sun, she fully comprehended the beauty of life for the first time. When the sun set and her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, she saw how frail everything became. Straightening up into a sitting position, she remained sitting the rest of the night. Life is a fragile thing, much more so than I knew. Love and trust are equally valuable, and even more fragile. I can see now, as everyone I know is dead, what we have been doing wrong all along. We live for the fair fight, and fighting is our essence. What we do not live for is the kill. Death is what causes us strife, always has and always will. It will catch up to everyone eventually, as it has caught up to me... But I diverted it. Sent it tumbling. Or did I? Something in my being is different. Never before have I been what I am, never again will I regain what I have lost. I do not know what I lost, yet. Time will show, for I will not dwell upon it. Never again, if I can avoid it. Remind me to remember this moment for ever more. Light and dark, life and death, in harmony and uproar. Death in battle is not what we live for, but what we live to avoid. As the first ray of sunlight broke through the skies, Arachnea's head dropped to her chest and she was lost to the world for a long time afterward. Beside her laid the swords she had taken from the enemy leaders' body and the strange round shield she had summoned during the battle. When the world came back She was in an unfamiliar place. It appeared to be a tent, but she couldn't be sure as she was lying on her stomach. If this is heaven or hell, the prophets have bummed out terribly on the description. Either that, or I am, against all probablility, still alive. Her head felt oddly light as she tried to lift it to see more of her surroundings. A smell of flowers wafted over, startling her. Was this heaven after all? The battlefield she fell asleep to flashed before her eyes, and she lurched into an upright position. A groan escaped her lips as her limbs, unused for too long, did their best to change themselves to her wishes. She thudded down onto her resting place again, momentarily being aware of only the pain. Memories flashed before her eyes again, and her eyelids snapped open again. Someone must have heard her futile attempts at rising, for before her stood a young mahjarrat she could not recognize. "You are awake! We knew it would happen. Can-" He was interrupted as Arachnea slowly brought her hand up to stop his squall of words. "Help me up first," she managed to croak forth from her cracked, dry lips. "Then tell me what has transpired." After a few more painful minutes, during which the unknown youngster helped her bring her slowly waking limbs into a position that resembled sitting, barely aided by Arachnea's own movement and her silent yelps, she was at least partially ready to take on the world again. My magic? She wondered. What will have happened to it? Will it have fallen asleep as did my body? Aware of the young mahjarrat watching her expectantly, she spoke slowly. "Now relate to me how I came to being here, wherever here is." Then she said nothing for a long time, while the other mahjarrat told her the history of the place. It was a long and winding poem, but she drank in every word of it. Warring Flowers, Arachnea reflected when the tale was done and silence settled once more, ''They grow only on the sites of great battles. '''History has been made, and I am caught in it....'' Her eyes glazed over as she continued to reflect over her realization during the Time of Pain in conduit to this newly found information. We live in a place of eternal warfare, eternal death. The Creator God seems to have created us for only this purpose, to fight each other to the death for his amusement. He gave us the sense for an equal fight so the battles become more interesting, but he seems to have missed when he gave us emotions.... Or maybe not.... "Mistress Statue?" The soft voice broke through her daze of thought and the sudden intervention triggered an instinct to defend herself faster than she could realize. One wall of her tent ripped as the other mahjarrat was heaved through it by her unaware strike of magic. Gaining a grip, she stood up. Her magic was back, that much was good. She felt it trickle down her body, aiding the reparation of sore spots even as she strode out to see to the one she had reflectively assaulted. He had landed in a field of Warring Flowers and was bleeding heavily from a multitude of cuts. "Why...." he coughed blood as she did her best to drag him out of the deadly sharp jungle by magic. "Because," and this was the only answer he ever got to this question. Extending her reach of magic, Arachnea set forth to close the most severe cuts to sustain his life, at least until a better healer would look at him. Later, she stubbornly refused to tell her "followers" what had transpired exactly. She told them a vague outline, never admitting her own involvement or losses. As she was, the Elders of the group accepted her into their ranks, occasionally listening to her small, but sharp comments on important matters. On her suggestion, they stayed at the site, founding their very first permanent lair and defending it against any and all who seeked to take it. Arachnea's prowess and worth in battle was rarely, if ever, proven during this time, as she never entered the front line of carnage, or even the middle ground. Her apparent dislike of mortal combat earned her many strange looks from her new allies, but she dismissed them instantly, concentrating on her silent, unnoticed work behind the lines. The byname "Mistress Statue", the first name the Blasted Followers had given her, had been stuck deep and well by now. It was a name to rely on, a name that exemplified incredible accuracy, punctuality and, somehow, knowledge far greater than was made visible at first glance. Arachnea took to sitting in front of her tent silently whenever she was not needed in other matters, further fastening her byname. Always beside her were the Harri Ezarri's twin blades and her own magical shield. Staying still became a trend, and sometimes she would find herself looking into a dozen expenctant faces as she woke up from her silent stance. Once, she told them "You will get bored of this soon enough. That will be the time when one of you draws his weapons against me in anger, and at that time, History itself will be made." The Future (catches up) She had been right. Whenever she had come with a similar comment, it had turned out to be true eventually. Not necessarily in the way shes had said, but the essence of her words were unquestionably true. The occurrence she had spoken of occured exactly seven hundred years, three months, one week and five days after her initial warning. It was during her midday meditation. She had barely seated herself, she felt, when a loud voice wrestled her out of her daydreams and into the real world again with pointed insults. "Why are you doing this? Why!? WHY? You never do anything, you just sit there and look mysterious! Your small hints at what might come are pointless and never help anyway!" The well grown mahjarrat who stood there, shouting, appeared to be the son of one of the Elders, who had died in a most recent battle. Arachnea had seen it coming, had seen it in his eyes when the battle started, and told him to refrain from going if he wished to live. He had given her a long look and answered "Some of us cannot change the way we are made." After the attacks had subsided, his broken body had been brought in for its final rites. As Arachnea closed his eyes for the last time, she was sure she heard him whisper "But you can." And now his son was standing there, glowing in his anger and loss, torn between deadly rage and incurable loss, shouting at her the accusations she had heard before in her dreams of what would come. "Your "Premonitions" are never accurate anyway! And if they were, you should have used them to Help us! If you knew my father would die, why didn't you stop him from going!?" A single tear ran down his face. Arachnea let it roll, let him shout until he was finished. "If you know what might happen, why don't you use your knowledge to improve the future to our good? What is the point of having a Sage in our encampment if she is worse than useless and never even helps in battles?" He went on for several minutes. "Enough," Arachnea stated eventually. The word dropped into the now murmuring crowd of onlookers like ink into water, spreading its tendrils everywhere until every sound had been strangled and complete silence ruled the place. "The Future cannot be changed. If you are lucky, you may catch a glimpse of it, but you cannot change it. The Future is what will happen, no matter what you do. Attempting to change things only makes matters worse. Your father knew this. He went into his last battle with his head held high, well aware that it would be his last." "Then you should have stopped him with force!"' ''And the young mahjarrat, named Ekros, drew his swords, stepped forward and sent a flashing blade directly for her head. The swish of the shining, polished blade which had so recently tasted blood awakened something in Arachnea. A little part of her, buried and forgotten, reared its ugly head: The lust to kill pounced on her. The blade stopped three inches before her head, stuck in an impregnable wall of air. Arachnea rose, an action that was later described similar to an unfolding flower. "You wish to fight me? So be it." With these words, she sent him wheeling across the clearing. He landed with an unpleasant crunch as he slid across seven feet of of gravel, before he got up and jumped forward again, yelling. Arachnea stood up. The chattering and murmurs of everyone else subsided instantly and dead silence set in, only broken by the crunch of the young mahjarrat's feet on the ground. He came closer and closer, raised his sword - and whirled past her as she did not stand where she had just a moment ago. The tent she had sat in front of collapsed as he burst into it and buried him within. Ekros uttered a number of vile curses and insults as he fought his way out of the fabrics. "You shall die for this!" ''Fighting on two fronts is never fun; I have to fight my adversary and myself. I must combat the need, the lust to kill him! For killing will never bring us forward: only life can do this. Arachnea was detached. Her mind was busy thinking, debating what to do while keeping an eye on her body lest it kill the young one. Ekros was slashing at her wildly from all sides, completely enraged, but Arachnea's swords served her finely as protection. Then he sprang back and channeled magic. Arachnea snapped back into her body in time to deflect the blow. A house nearby crumbled into dust. My reactions are too slow... I have not fought for too long. It is true, what the Elder told me: We cannot change what we are, but we can change... Her line of thought was interrupted as another blast of magic slid her back several paces. She briefly responded with a small explosion right before Ekros' face, sending him back into a small pile of rubble. We can change what we do. We are creatures made to fight wars; fighting wars forevermore. Therefore, death is wasteful; how can we fight when we are dead? We, '''I', must strive to fight, not to kill. And fighting is only for those worthy.'' She bent sideways, sending Ekros' next fireball upwards into the sky, before talking to him, no louder than normal speech, "So fight me then, man on woman! Come here and fight me!" Ekros jumped. Arachnea watched his trajectory, calculating. All other mahjarrat watched with bated breath. It happened faster than anyone could see. One moment Ekros was in the air, hurtling toward Arachnea, the Sage, the next he was on the ground, pinned down by the neck by a powerful fist. "Admit defeat." Arachnea's steely gaze bored itself down into Ekros. A tiny part of his brain warmed up and informed him that the owner of these eyes would not hesitate a second to give him the most painful death he could imagine. Another part coupled in, mentioning that dying in a very unpleasant way was not a good course of action, upon which his conciousness came by and told him that he did not want to die. Especially not unpleasantly. "... All right." The collective breathed in again, and Arachnea released him. He thudded back onto the ground. The Sage of Blasted Mountain After this incident, nobody ever challenged Arachnea's right to stay behind battles again. The oldest Mahjarrat were amazed, the youngest big-eyed enthusiasm. The ones of Ekros' age granted her, begrudgingly, their respect. She became a wise person, after pointing out that she had foreseen this very incident, as she had foreseen the death that caused the scene and many more tiny, tiny things. "I am not a prophet," She kept repeating to those who wanted her to tell their future, "I am merely better than most at reading the signs of what is to come." Notable "prophecies" Arachnea made in this time was a large battle in which she would be drawn out to fight, but would prevail in, and the destruction of the Camp, which was growing into a city. In a very prophetic moment, she called out across the courtyard in a clear voice "There will be the time when Freneskrae is abandoned: No Mahjarrat will remain on this plane." As she was battered with questions about this, she merely shrugged. "It will be. I cannot tell you how, but it will come to pass." Between the ones most eager for her advice was the one who had awoken her from her sleep. He unquestioningly followed whatever she told him, even though he still had scars from the time that she inadvertly had thrown him into a field of Warring Flowers in full bloom. In battles, she would sometimes give him advice beforehand on where he should fight, which either resulted in his survival as the company he else would have gone with was decimated or an opportunity to seize control of the battle. He grew to be one of the main Generals within the camp, never admitting that his strategies were derived from Mistress Statue, the Sage of Blasted Mountain. At least, he never admitted it until a very decisive battle. This was seven decades later, when the dust had settled around Arachnea and her followers. Arachnea herself had left the growing city to visit the place that had once been her birth place, and she had left everything - and everyone - behind. Not even three days after her departure, a force of enemy mahjarrat, allied with several fierce beasts, approached the gates and demanded entrance. When they were let in, they loudly demanded to see the Sage, claiming they had important news for her. As it turned out that Arachnea was away for the first time in a century, they were enraged and started laying waste to the center of the town. The general forced them out of the city, upon which they retreated a ways and called for reinforcements. When these reinforcements arrived, they laid siege to the city, their attacks usually thwarted by the young general. A month-long stand-off ensued, the fight that would in time become famous under the name.... The Siege of Blasted Mountain Arachnea was lost in thought. She had traveled days to reach her birthplace, but all she now was capable of doing was to stand and look. Her eyes rested on the ruins of her childhood, slowly shifting to give her a complete view of the camp. There were broken tents, corpses and ashes everywhere, mostly untouched even after so much time. She strode forward, into one of the best-kept tents. She knew what she would find inside before she entered, but she had to see it. There, on the spot where Aylya had been born and buried. A single Warring Flower grew there, emitting a feeling of immense sadness and loneliness. Arachnea carefully stroked the sharp leaves. Then she sucked her finger, which had been cut despite her best effort to avoid the razor-sharp edge. Straightening up, Arachnea put her mourning and sadness behind her, foreseeing that this was a place that she would never see again. Then she went out of the tent. She paid no heed to the horizon as she walked around the wrecked camp, stopping at important points; where she had been married, where Z'Tubra had been married, where Dyluneris had died.... Even where Rochnir had stood before the elders of the group, trying to defend his conquest of women. She relived each memory in silence and subsequently locked it away in her head, so she need never see it again. Finally, she came to the road out of the camp. Lifting her eyes to the horizon, she spotted a faraway cloud of smoke, exactly at the place where the city of Blasted Mountain must lie. Putting a hand to her head, she told herself "I should have known this. My foresight seems not to be trained enough...." She went through the camp once more, finding leftover weapons and the occasional supply. When she was done, she was at the other end of the camp. Straightening her back like a plank, she went through the camp, setting everything on fire, letting it go up into flames. "So I rise from the Ashes of my family, toughened by my loss and my gain." Then she set out toward the distant column of smoke rising from her new hometown. In the City of Blasted Mountain, the Siege was going wrong for the besieged. A number of battles in front of the city had caused them to incur major losses, while the siege wore down the food supply and mentality of the inhabitants. After two weeks, the attackers broke through a section of the wall surrounding the town. The young general, taught by the Sage, did his best and managed to contain them, though losing valuable troops and supplies in the process. All in all, the whole siege had been a major loss for him. After having lost part of the town, he turned to the Council of Elders. He admitted that his previous victories were mainly dependent on advice from the Sage and that without her, he was not fit to be in a leading position. Several of the Elders nodded, having noticed this before. Now they took charge of battles, but it was too late for a resistance. Two and a half weeks after the official start of the siege, the city was lost as the Elders and the General gathered what was left of the inhabitants and fled the city through a secret exit. They set a major section of the city on fire, so the attacking forces should not have much joy from their victory. The attackers did not mind that the city was mainly in ruins by now. They walked in through open doors, put out the largest and the most dangerous fires and settled in the biggest house in town, a building commonly known as the Castle, or the House of Elders. None of them ever bothered to venture into the fields of Warring Flowers, where the tent that Arachnea called her home laid. This was not very surprising, as the flowers, weakened by fire, were spreading razor-sharp bits across the area. Then the Sage returned She came alone, with nothing but her swords and a staff on her. One moment, the ones who had fled the city were alone, the next she was there among them. No-one had seen her coming. Looking up at the smoking city, she asked only one question: "Who?". The Elders and the General found themselves unable to answer. Nobody knew what the group who had attacked called themselves, or why they had risked so many of their people to take the city. Arachnea nodded briskly. "Then it is time for me to see what they wanted to tell me." And she strode out toward the gates of her new, though burned, hometown. Inside, she found nobody. Her eyes narrowing, her steps swiftly carried her to the House of Elders. Here, she found the attackers. Several large beasts prowled the area, but they took one look at her and quickly turned away, as if they knew what waited them if they came too close. Arachnea ignored them and walked on. The doors of the Castle opened before her as she paid them no further heed. When she was through, they closed behind her with a sound that signaled capture and no escape. Untouched, Arachnea strode on until she reached what could have been called the Throne Room. It had used to be the chamber where the Council of Elders gathered in public, but their chairs were all removed in favor of a large throne, which was inhabited by the new "King" of the city. He stood up when Arachnea entered. Then the two measured each other up, until their eyes met. Arachnea's metal gold gaze met the cold, yet burning steel-gray eyes of the conqueror. For minutes they stood, interlocked in an immense battle of stares. Then Arachnea averted her gaze. "Who are you?". The conqueror on his throne laughed. "I am your worst fear, "Sage". I am the Ghost from your past, come to end your miserable life and that of all your loved ones, too!" Arachnea showed no emotion. "That will be difficult to accomplish." The other one snorted in response. "We will see." Arachnea nodded very slightly to herself, before proceeding to ask,"Tell me then, who you are." The one on the throne cast his arms out, looking down at her with scorn. "Haven't you foreseen who I am? I am Octagon, heir to the noble Ezarri!" Silence spread after this statement. "That is why you are here to kill me, then. Revenge for your family." Arachnea inclined her head. "You are welcome to face me." Immediately, seven guards marched up, ready to apprehend her. She tutted dissapointedly. "I would have thought you to show more courage than this. You are even more cowardly than your family!" Octagon got up in one movement. "Silence! I will not have your insolence under my roof." Arachnea waggled her head and turned to one of the guards. "Don't you think that he should back himself up? A weak leader is one who is afraid of facing his enemies alone." This set the guards to thinking. The let off her, making way for Octagon to approach her himself. The mahjarrat in question was beside himself. "Insolent bastards! I will have you all beheaded for this!" Then he took a deep breath and looked straight at Arachnea. "But only after I finish this unworthy being who calls herself a sage". Arachnea clasped her hands behind her back as he stepped down from his throne. She followed his movements as he walked closer, and then around her once in a wide circle. "Come now," Arachnea prompted him, "Surely you aren't afraid of me? Or are you not so confident in your abilities after all?" Octagon gritted his teeth. "What makes these people fear you? You are as dangerous as .... a spider!" Nomad's Requiem be written soon! (Yes, I know it's a total ripoff of the Quest Name) Gielinor Under Itchlarin TBA She was awesome. Under Zaros TBA She was awesome here too. The God Wars TBA She was awesome and killed Zilyana twice. Fourth age TBA Epicness. Gielinor once more She soon found a magic guild that would bring her closer to the world, but was rejected because the guild leaders found out she was a Mahjarrat, and they distrusted mahjarrat. She tried again, in another magical school, and was rejected again. The guild-leaders did not know then what a terrible mistake they had made in not accepting her. Now driven by anger, she looked for someone to help her fight these unworthy so-called magic schools. In the Aren Family she found what she was looking for. Vox Ex Affectum The Arens taught her the basics of more elemental magic, mostly water and air even though she already knew them. But it was part of her plan to stay unnoticed like this for as long as she could. In her time with these dark mages, she met many of her "friends"; Julian Duphrane, Aranitus Aren, Zane Aren.... Oh yes, she enjoyed herself there. She even started to'' like'' some of them, something that would, in time, turn out to be a mistake. Together with Julian and Aranitus, she went out in the hunt for Aranitus' father, who did not live long after they went out for the hunt. Alas, the enjoyable time in the Aren family, called Vox Ex Affectum, could not last forever. Yanille, under Eden Syivan, attacked and eventually destroyed the family; Aranitus escaped, though destroying the Aspera tower in the process. Luckily, Arachnea had thought of rescuing their valuable artifacts before the tower went down in a gigantic fireball. This, of course, ended the relaxed atmosphere in Vox Ex Affectum. Arachnea turned to the far north, hiding in a cave and cursing herself for surrounding herself with humans once more. She was disappointed. Weeks later, Arachnea was disturbed in her meditation. Julian Duphrane, the Demon Lord of Chaos himself, had foolishly entered her temporary residence. In her paranoia, Arachnea thought he was here just to gloat, and attacked. Not even a demon lord can withstand the power of an enraged mahjarrat, and he was subdued quickly. To find the truth, Arachnea brought Julian to a secret place, preparing to torture him until he told her everything. A night pinned onto a water wheel in motion, being ducked under every two minutes, almost destroyed the demon. Lucky for him that he was rescued. Arachnea, however, retired to her cave once more. Too soon, she was disturbed again. A woman of around 35 rattled the peace of the cave, unsettling the mighty being within. It turned out to be a traveling mage sick of the horrible doings of the world. Arachnea extracted the womans name; Wilma. The middle-aging one seemed curious as to what Arachnea was doing. In fact, she exasperated the old Mahjarrat so much that Arachnea let slip a silent prayer to Zaros. The foolish woman tried to ask Arachnea out. Eventually, Arachnea let slip on some of the knowledge of Zaros. The young woman seemed happy with what little she knew, so Arachnea appentriced her; eventually brainwashing Wilma enough so she thought Arachnea was her mistress, whom she had to report everything important to. After this piece of magic, Arachnea sent the young one out to locate Zarosians foolish enough to make themselves noticeable. And surprised was Arachnea when Wilma actually found some. Under the leading of a mahjarrat, no less. So she let Wilma continue the research of Oblitus's followers, while she herself pursued more important matters. Eventually, Arachnea made a pact with an old aquaintance: Aranitus Aren. They got engaged, and Arachnea had to reveal her true nature. No living thing, excepting maybe the other mahjarrat, had ever seen Arachnea's true form. Of course, Aranitus was unsettled. Even more so when Arachnea sealed his tongue, rendering him unable to willingly tell anyone of Arachnea's true nature. They started making their plans, to spite their enemies by getting married right in front of their noses. Wilma's Death The plans were interrupted by Wilma's death. One late night, Wilma appeared near Aranitus' hideout with a loud scream. He found her in a bush, almost cleaved in half by a mighty swordcut. While Aranitus did his best to heal her (He probably didn't even know why), Arachnea came along. She understood that the situation was hopeless for her young appentrice, and slave. So she decided that the White Knights had wrought this, and the White Knights should recieve her spite. Aranea picked Wilma up, and teleported to the White Knights Castle. The teleblock was easy to remedy; Aranea just appeared above it and let herself gently to the ground. And then she let Wilma's body go up into a net of holy flames dedicated to The Great Lord. After this event, Arachnea withdrew from the world, smothering her loss and anger at the Death of Wilma. Eventually she returned, when it became clear that Wilma somehow had gotten herself revived in mysterious and strange ways. Wilma got involved in the Enchanted Gems legend, and another mahjarrat, something Arachnea wasn't too fond of; then again, she never liked others of her race since her fall. Arachnea agreed to keeping one of Wilma's Gems in her house, safely away from the world. Some Gem stories In the late evening, Aranitus summoned Arachnea to his house to talk about the Gems. She was slightly shocked to see the state he was in, with an eyepatch and all. They discussed a while, about giving Aranitus' demon friend, Julian Duphrane, the gem to keep Arachnea "Out of harm's way" and about their new ploy to dispatch Zenthos. (As if Arachnea needs to be held out of harms way) Sometime in the middle, a random persona by the name of Felix appeared and was led away by Julian, so as not to reveal the gems to him. While the two were gone, Aranitus convinced Arachnea to trust Julian (Who has been betraying her several times already) just enough. So Arachnea got up and started summoning the Gem in her safekeeping. It took several minutes, because Arachnea's house does resemble a high-security prison, just with more traps. Eventually, with Arachnea murmuring "Behold..... The Topaz" the Gem appeared, warm and damp from the journey. Arachnea carefully handed it to Julian, who had come in again. She made sure not to touch it, and reminded him again that if he lost it in any way, his life was nothing more worth. The tale continues Arachnea was called into the Aren tower, where Zenthos was trying to escape. He had entered through a rather dark and suspicious hole, freshly made by, you guessed it, himself. Too bad that Aranitus had trapped him after that. Now Zenthos was trying to escape, hindered by Julian Duphrane, Renthgar, Felix, Aranitus and Arachnea Aren. Xido, on the other hand, seemed more willing to help Zenthos, along with an unknown would-be assasin ranger who randomly appeared through the hole Zenthos had left. In the ensuing fight, Zenthos used his Freneskaen linguistics, to drop all humans in the room to their knees. Arachnea fell too, to not spoil her "Elven" appearance. As they rose again, she cleaved Zenthos' head almost in two even as Xido blew him clean through the keep wall. Aranitus, Xido and Arachnea stormed out to intercept Zenthos, while Renthgar, Julien and Areya battled with the would-be assasin Ranger. Zenthos had managed to summon his ship of undead, which now started to attack the four on the Keep's moat. Xido started some kind of storm, and so the battle went inside again. Eventually, Zenthos and the would-be assasin ranger (who was still not dead) turned into shadows and went to flee. The ranger escaped, but Arachnea managed to trap Zenthos, who went to hide in the shadows of Xido's armour. Aranitus eventually dispelled Xido's Family Ring, causing him to fade out of the tower. Zenthos escaped this way too, but at least he would not be around for a long, long time afterwards. Head wounds of that calibre heal slowly, even for mahjarrat. Now, Zane Aren himself brought an army of undead to storm the tower. While Aranitus and Renthgar fought them, Arachnea headed upstairs to meet her "Stepdaughter". She found Areya in the process of trying to make a shiv. And Arachnea was nice to her! ~One needs good followers, and these must be loyal. But not get too close to them...~ Julian Duphrane, someone who Arachnea now knew was absolutely untrustworthy, called her to him once more, and told her another wild story about Aranitus. Not that she believed him and she left very soon. Leaving Duphrane with several unpleasant souvenirs in the form of biting, demon-headed potatoes and an angry band of Goblins. Then one day, Arachnea returned to Keep le Aren to find her daughter-in-law, Areya, kidnapped. Obviously, she is way displeased about this. Just as she is about to fly into a rage, Arachnea remembers the day before, where Xido betrayed them all, helping Zenthos to escape. Reluctantly, she recognizes him to be the bigger threat for the moment, and sets out to set up a trap that is supposed to keep him from betraying the Arens once and for all, pouring her rage into the devious traps. Of course, a trap of the sort she set takes a lot of power to build up, and her body slumps into a mini-hibernation, to keep the drain from harming her. Aranitus is hugely alarmed, as his wife seems to be dead. However, Arachnea wakes again, and starts plotting again at once, still exhausted from her trap-setting. Soon after, her letter to Elizabeth, the Queen of Ardougne, appears on the desk of the aforementioned person. It mentioned a minor threat, along with the information that Arachnea knew Elizabeth's real, mahjarratean name, and the request to get Areya and Felix back. Few days later, her request for Areya's release not having been answered yet, and Wilma getting her only remaining Gem in trouble, Arachnea decides to take matters into her own hands, and resolutely takes the Onyx off Wilma's hands. The following day, as she came into Ardougne, she saw, and couldn't believe her eyes; for it looked like Areya being burned at a stake. Not exactly a pleasant sight for the mahjarrat who had grown to like the young woman somewhat. As a result, Arachnea set out to tell Kisbeth off once and for all; she set Ardougne on fire. Subtly, of course, but leaving an unmistakeable trace that she was sure Kisbeth would notice and follow. Meeting Kisbeth. (!) Kisbeth must have been a little surprised when she found Arachnea completely peacefully, after having set a major city on fire. The conversation was full of hidden meaning and subtle jabs and threats. (expand) And then I died (!) Then one day, Arachnea realized how she had made a mistake in falling in love with Aranitus. Immediately she separated herself for several weeks, while getting him out of her head as well as possible. Then, she used a trick to convince Aranitus that he need not love her anymore; she faked her death in a very impressive way. The burning house and the bloodied cane in the wall convinced Aranitus completely. Arachnea was obviously still alive. She had taken posession of a gem, and was searching for a way to get all others, but one day it was gone. She raged for several days, then returned her attention to the world; it waned to be supervised, too. Miss Assumed Name In the following times, she came closer to the worldly actions within the Order of Equilibrium. She helped the fighters defend her ex-love and husband Aranitus Aren and shrouded a corpse for them. (In grass, somehow) She has also taken an interest in the ensuing conflict of the Arens, egging Ataneq to start the fight for the title of Grandmaster and supreme head of the Arens. The Order of Equilibrium disbanded off quite soon, without ever having taught Arachnea the fighting she joined for originally. She was not pleased and raged in her home, until she felt a wave of power pass the island. Few moments later she was in full activity, finding out what it had been. As she cast a look in her fire, she saw a face she recognized. It spoke to her: "You know what to do, my time has come." And Arachnea knew what it meant; she was now a Helper. But as the Chosen did not require help yet, Arachnea sought out a traveling Lunar mage who was willing to teach her. The price was a bit high for Arachnea's taste, as she had to tell the story of her life without lying. But she did learn the Lunar magics from the friendly old mage, Lin. Fire Rising When she was sure of her knowledge of Lunar magic, Arachnea's "Human" face stretched into a grin. She knew who was awakening. She knew, of course, that she would be the one to help her student's Helpers. The first one she had to work with was Nymal. She used an old trick of hers, the shadow mage. After Nymal had defeated the picture alive, Arachnea granted her the set pieces. Days later, she helped "Doc" on his way by teleporting him to Ardougne, suddenly and without asking. Her third help was swiping five terror mages aside from Hansuke as they went in for a killing strike. Now she sits and waits patiently, preparing all her plans, including the setup to ruin Falador from the inside. The Ritual of the Mahjarrat The time came for a new Ritual to commence. They had all felt it, when one of the "greater" mahjarrat died, and knew that the time for their own rejuvenation drew close. Arachnea had met with several mahjarrat before the Ritual commenced. She arrived at the Ritual Grounds shortly before the choosing was to start. The verbal exchange was heated on the Zamorakian's and Zarosian's side. The mahjarrat formed a loose rectangle, with the Zamorakians on one side, the Zarosians on the other and those who would not tell, or served both gods when the need be, on the sidelines. Suggestions were placed, threats were thrown. Both Kisbeth, Ptolemos, Kemses and several others were suggested as potential sacifices. True to tradition, the verbal sparring soon turned into a real fight. Arachnea stayed on the sidelines, until she discovered Draezkorn planning Kisbeth's demise. She argued with him and his cronies for a while, not really getting into a fight. She had just thrown Draezkorn's crony, who had suggested her as the race whore, at his master when the Ritual itself began. Arachnea turned and teleported closer to the Ritual Stone, directly next to the sacrifice where there was an empty space. The skies roiled and the ground shook when the sacrifice died, releasing her power to the surrounding Mahjarrat. Arachnea, Kisbeth, Tenebra, and Draezkorn, who flew above the Stone, were closest to the eruption of power. After the Ritual itself was over, and there were renewed, fleshy faces on all sides, the gathering of mahjarrat started to disband. Arachnea was approached by Draezkorn's crony, whom she warned that fighting her might well be the last mistake he ever made. The last thing she did at the Grounds was to watch the battle between a full mahjarrat and a half-breed, trying to prove itself worthy of attending the Ritual. After she had watched for a while, smiling, Arachnea teleported away in a peculiar storm of Glyphs, to her home, where important matters awaited her. The new Arcane College As the Ritual had come to a closure and she was fully renewed, Arachnea set out to help the Arens once more. She knew they needed the help and could not deny herself to see Aranitus once more, even though she knew it was a fool's dream. She called upon Ptolemos, a Zamorakian mahjarrat she knew to be rather weak, and upon his appearance, convinced him he had lost his magical powers. When he failed to use his renewed power because he believed he had lost them, she laughed and sealed him in her personal dungeons. Arachnea was called into the Kandar Institute of Magic, where Chris and Aranitus revealed that they had seen through her disguise as Leila Kala Aren. Aranitus was severely shaken by the final revelation. Arachnea's first new lesson was a failure, and she recons she needs to learn how to teach again. A duel (or three vs. her) in the Runespan, following the Wizard's Conclave ended up with Arachnea being banished to a nearby plane. As it turned out, she found herself unable to return on her own, as the plane did not permit the full opening of a portal from within itself. She needs a trustworthy person on Gielinor to help! She can trust no Aren, so she has turned to the one she knows best; Aspertina Feu Vigilantis. She contacted a random Aren through the ring and told him to find her and tell her what he'd heard. With the help of her most trusted servant, Arachnea tread the ground of RuneScape once more. Arachnea's Bracelet As a result of her banishment to a nearby plane, Arachnea found she had to build herself a foolproof way to return to her home in any eventuality she might face. To ensure that it would be impossible to lose and easy to access, she prepared a magical bracelet. During the designing process, she constantly reminded herself that the bracelet might have to fend off hostile attempts of removal. As a result, she started anew time after time. By creating several layers of enchanted gems, she figured, she could place a multitude of enchantments within the bracelet, to make it impossible to remove. She started with a core of Onyx, a substance extremely hard to come by and yet she had enough for her thin bracelet core. A thin layer of Dragonstone adds to the protection against direct physical attacks. After the dragonstone, a layer of diamond is enchanted to hold off any attempts to enchant the bracelet. Ruby, following the diamond, contains the enchantment against elemental magic. Upon the ruby layer, a plating of Emerald was placed, holding the main protection against physical attacks. Sapphire composes the second last layer, set with the simple enchantment of keeping the bracelet intact against most raw magical attacks. The very thin Ivory on the top is charged with fitting itself snugly, too snugly to the wearer's arm. In time, more accurately over the course of a night, the enchantment on the ivory will tighten the bracelet so much that it will fit itself flawlessly into the wearer's skin, leaving almost no trace of itself. To ensure that all her enchantment worked perfectly, she took a lenght of the alloy to the newly founded Mages' Research Institute, where she instructed the mages to cast any and every spell they could think of at the material When it was found completely resilient against magical attacks, she proceeded to the Academy of Heroes, where she asked the residents to attempt to destroy her alloy with the power of their swords and other melee weapons. As a final, and absolute test, she made a spare bracelet and fitted it onto Ptolemos, charging the Onyx layer within to inform her of his whereabouts and his attempts to remove it, be they successful or not. Within my Prison After capturing Ptolemos, Arachnea held him within her prison for weeks. In regular intervals, she used him for experiments where she would turn parts of his body into fruit, only to change it back again with a new formula. Not all attempts were successful, but as she progressed, she made sure to eradicate all signs of her experimentation from his body. A while after Ptolemos' capture, Arachnea called for Azulra, easily defeating her within the confines of Aspera and casting her into the prison beside Ptolemos. Azulra's and Ptolemos' minions were frantic with their masters gone. A servant of Ptolemos, Rosaline, came traveling out from Forinthry, where she was intercepted by Aspertina Feu at Arachnea's command. Aspertina told Rosaline few things, beside the fact that "Leila Kala Aren" was the one who held her master imprisoned, and sent her in the direction of Aspera. Rosaline turned up near Aspera with several chaos monks at her side. They were decimated with ease by Arachnea's destructive magic, even their prayers to Zamorak could not stop her. Arachnea took the opportunity, saving the life of two of them, on the condition that they be her slaves forevermore - without them noticing. The last remaining Chaos Monk was turned into a zombie and sent to retrieve Rosaline, who had fled. Azulra's minions were much quicker in their reaction, and severely more agressive. A group of demons approached Arachnea's house and attempted to enter it. Being what she was, Arachnea had not intended this to be easy, or even likely. A force wall surrounded the house, burning the first demon to attempt a frontal attack. The demons, being more intelligent than most demons by far, found a weak spot in the barrier and, after disrupting it, broke through. Planning ahead is a great thing, Arachnea reflected as they found only a small room that started to move downward, to the lower levels of her dungeon. For her own entertainment, she misguided the Demons slightly to cause strife between them, even though she was unsuccessful in the end. Meanwhile, Azulra did her Mahjarrat best to escape her cell all on her own. With a small pin, she fumbled in the lock of her cell until she managed to break it open. Arachnea appeared to attempt to put a bracelet on her too, but Azulra turned into her smoke form even as she summoned one of her demons to fend off Arachnea. As she summoned a giant spider to distract the demon, Arachnea smiled inside; She was seen as a failure again. Azulra managed to teleport away without a bracelet, and Arachnea destroyed the demonic forces she had left with ease. Reality Strikes Where Thorvald is defeated, Ptolemos let free and we meet Aranitus once more. The next chapter (or this one) might include a plan to irritate Joe Adalhard, although not 100 % intentionally. *She imprisons Ptolemos and Azulra, using them for experiments. *She directs her minions to confuse Ptolemos' minions. *She confuses Ptolemos' minions more by herself. *Azulra escapes with the help of her demonic minions. *She offers Ptolemos freedom and his magic ability back against one last harmless experiment; putting on a bracelet of her own construction. When he refuses, she adds it to his arm by force and kicks him out. *Arachnea prepares for the war against Thorvald *She notices Ptolemos chopped his arm off to escape her bracelet, so she reclaims it, along with his hand. **Arachnea starts to contemplate a scheme to erase humans' knowledge of Ancient Magic **She is invited to a party for warriors against Thorvald. Here, she meets Aranitus again (he thinks she came just to torment him), and is subsequently thrown out as her joking tone to the servants irritated an undead guardian. **Arachnea aquires a plot of land directly west of Falador's western wall and puts up a sign: "Caution: Arcane Ventures" **She then turns it into a herb garden. **Arachnea and Azulra launch an attack at Kemses' fortress to kill Ptolemos, who is residing there. **They discover Ptolemos has some kind of bomb. Arachnea attaches the bomb to Ptolemos as he teleports away; his aura fades moments later. **Arachnea meets Dimissione again. He tells her of Azzandrah (?) and tries to convince her to help him have Azulra sacrificed at the next Ritual. **Azulra calls on Arachnea, who was suffering the lingering effects of almost killing Ptolemos, and asks her to tune a pile of Bane Ore to Ptolemos' hand. She does so, taking care to divide the Bane Ore unfairly in her favor beforehand. **She meets Lu-Kreeza, commenting on her missing a Ritual and gets told about Mavelus. **She meets Mirrah, he casts shadow magic at her and she tell him he is an idiot for doing so in disguise. The Redemption of Arachnea Planned Current time Role-Play *Arachnea attends a multitude of mahjarrat meetings, between others it turns out that Guthix is dead and that Ptolemos wants to kill Zamorak; As well as a plan to kill Azulra is spreading *Xolotl, Myestial and Arachnea swear a blood pact that they will kill Azulra. *Arachnea and Xolotl meet near Lumbridge and talk about vandalism. *They then proceed to the desert where a test of power will be occurring. Whoever scores the first hit, wins - and incurs the penalty from their blood oath: instant death or eternal servitude. *Azulra attends the duel, watching from the sideline. When Arachnea accidentally throws Xolotl at her, she joins the fight. *Arachnea and Xolotl turn on her, in quick order defeating her with minor penalties. *Xolotl strikes Arachnea, invoking the blood oath because Evgeni, who had come by, had been the one to strike the killing blow. *She meets with Evgeni. He confesses his love for her, and they do "it" all night. *Yurlungur approaches the Aren Tower. Arachnea watches him a while, and converses briefly with him. *She continues her things with Evgeni. *Kisbeth visits the two at the Academy of Heroes. Appearance Arachnea has the ability to shapeshift at will, and she does so frequently, only rarely showing her true form. This led to a slight personality loss, upon which she started incorporating something of importance into her different shapes: Her life-gem. All of her forms have a mark of great importance in their forehead. The form and size varies, however. Lich Form Currently obsolete; She is rejuvenated. In her lich form, Arachnea stands at 7'0, with a permanent grin etched into her featured. The life-gem in her forehead will be obsidian purple, so dark that it is almost black. Her eyes are an indefinable color that seems to shimmer out of view as soon as you try to focus on it, making it extremely hard to look her into the eyes. She wears a set of deep forest green robes that are not only decently armored but allow great freedom of movement. Rejuvenated Rejuvenated, Arachnea grows nothing at all, so she will still stand at 7'0. She will appear taller, thanks to her renewed magical might and a certain straightening up. Her octarine hair will show up wonderfully. Aranea "Aranea" was the alias Arachnea used the first time she joined the Vox Ex Affectum. In this form, she 'is' an aged elf female clad in white robes. She wields a buoquet of flowers, or a cane (in her later days of this form). Aranea has gray hair and stands at 5'6. Leila Kala Aren A mage, dressed in flowing robes. She never wields a staff, always wears a red cape, is pale as the midday sun and is somewhat lofty. She makes the most incredible magic look like child's play and will blast anyone who defies her through a wall. She has a slight limp on her right leg which you will only notice if you look really closely and a tattoo on her forehead that looks, on close inspection, like a Zaros symbol with large wings. She stands at 5'5. Amanda Fisher A slim, tall woman, usually dressed in green, and with mysterious tattoos all over, from her right cheek down to her left heel. She stands at 5'5, on her forehead is an embellished elven-style tatto. (Arielle DeCiel) An alias made to survey the amount of half-breeds in the Nocte Family. She wears a headband with a Dragonstone in it over her mark, has an old injury on her left hand and a dress sense as old as she looks (67). She likes long walks in the forests, and kids. Arielle appears to be 5'3. Pastalina Hellion "Pastalina Hellion" is a student at the College of Mages. She stands at 5'4, has purple hair, reddish robes and a Saradomin Staff. Within the College, she wears the customary white Student Robes. Gallery Aranea - With Cane.png|"Aranea" in all her late glory. Aranea as Amanda.png|"Amanda Fisher", epic mage. Pastalina Hellion.png|"Pastalina Hellion" Beachwear.png|Arachnea all set for a beach party. She has trouble getting a decent tan, though. Arachnea_chathead3.png|Arachnea's Rejuvenated Face. Skills and Abilities Another section to be reworked. Magic Arachnea is well known and feared for her poficiency in shadow magic. She, like Sliske, has gained a very good understanding of the Shadow Realm, although Arachnea recollects that the place stinks, lacks color and frankly, it's only useful in some very complicated events. Much less known is Arachnea's immense healing power. Mahjarrat are known for their destructive abilities, not their reconstructive. Within her knowledge of healing magic lies at least part of her secret to agewise immortality. It also influences her ability to shapeshift, as well as her physical combat abilities. In most, if not all, other schools of magic, possibly excepting Ikra Magic and the Blitzen Vekon technique, Arachnea has trained vigorously and become a dangerous combatant. Were she restricted to any specific school or element of magic, she would lose little lethality. The part of magic that Arachnea favors most in many cases, is the use of mind magic to prevent loss of memory. Said application of magic grants her the ability to learn at a far steeper rate than most students, while it preserves all her previous knowledge for future use. Within combat, Arachnea's use of personal gravity maipulation endangers people. Coupled with her unusually agile fighting style, she may suddenly attack you while standing upright on a wall or even from the ceiling. Melee Magic frequently refusing to work, or working wrongly, in Freneskrae, Arachnea learned ways to defend herself without the use of magic. Within melee combat, she has learned the use of a number of weapons to varying degrees of proficiency. Her greatest danger lies in agility. Uncommon for mahjarrat, who may be viewed as "Tanks" - Able to withstand heavy blows as well as dealing them out. The armor of these people is often a nuisance and reduces their speed and freedom of movement. Arachnea is not a fan of armor; She believes that the hits she cannot deflect with her combative abilities are hits she deserves and should learn from. Following up on her agile fighting style, it is natural that she developed a certain understanding of martial arts. A technique used by her mostly for evasion, but if she really decides to hit someone, said person may expect to be taking at least several steps back while clutching their stomach. Swords are things most mahjarrat have come into contact with, one way or another. Arachnea never favored this way of fighting, especially after the Battles of Blasted Mountain. She did accept that it would become necessary eventually, though, and learned to handle the sharp things. Other Arachnea's talents, refined and learned over the course of thousands of years. *'''''Diplomacy Arachnea is a born diplomat. Her way of speaking is in almost all cases completely noncommittal, and perfectly neutral. She does not take sides, she delegates. *''Arts and Crafts'' Arachnea is quite a skilled Artisan. Though the use of magic helps her shape materials into any desired form, she frequently devotes time and effort to creating objects of use and beauty. Weaknesses Arachnea has had a very long time to work on her weaknesses, eliminating as many of them as possible. *''Ranged combat'' Arachnea is not good with anything that involves any kind of bow. Even when throwing a stone, she is not very proficient. She does not like ranged combat, she cannot aim well with this form of ranged combat, and she is absolutely clear on that magic is a much better form of this. *''Gullibility'' Arachnea can be tricked somewhat easily; She does not have a knack for seeing through intricate plots. *''Boredom'' Arachnea is often bored by long periods of inactivity, even though she has lots to do. This can lead to strange decisions or actions, which in turn may lead to potentially dangerous situations. Languages spoken Ranging from best to worst in descending order. Arachnea has a natural affinity for languages and enjoys learning them. *Old Freneskraen (Master) *Freneskraen (Master) *Ancients (Master) *Old gnomish (Good) *Common (Good) *Gnomish (Good) *Elven (Good) *Fairy (Good) *Kharadian (Good) *Eastern (Semifluent) *Dwarven (Semifluent) With the use of interpretive magic, Arachnea is able to understand most other languages at least semifluently. Languages written Ranging again from best to wrost in descending order. Arachnea is not partcularly fond of writing, as she finds that written information falls into the wrong hands far too easily. She prefers the relative ease of the spoken word, combined with the knowledge that a word on your lips is by far more versatile than a word in a book. *Old Freneskraen (Master) *Freneskraen (Good) *Ancients (Good) *Common (Good) *Gnomish (Good) *Old gnomish (Good) *Elven (Semifluent) *Kharadian (Semifluent) *Eastern (Semifluent) *Dwarven (Can read) *Fairy (Can read) Personality Arachnea, after Eons upons Eons of living and learning, has become someone who will neither trust anyone, nor believe that anyone could possibly be stupid enough to trust her. She still frequently points out the lack of faith others have in her, noting that she is completely trustworthy and would not harm a fly unless it gained her anything. (At this point it is worth noting that "Gaining her something" still can translate to "Toying with for fun") She is extremely hard to annoy, and rarely manages to stay at 180 for long, cooling down her rage very quickly. Some would say that this is even more dangerous, as she is likely to start plotting your demise after becoming calm. '' ''If she does get into a rage, your best bet is often to hide under a rock, preferably quite far away. Arachnea has come to enjoy the simple things in life, like food, drink and friends, although the latter is lacking quite a bit due to her inability to trust fellow Mahjarrat. She is well versed in good wines and absolutely hates anyone in love; thanks to her own rather unlucky ventures into said area. Despite all, she is still loyal to Zaros. In him, she sees a force to follow that will grant her fulfillment of what she sees as her purpose in life: to fight worty opponents. She is not a fanatic, but she would give up her life for Zaros if it saved his so future mahjarrat may carry on their purpose, led by this worthy God. While Zaros is away, of course, and with no seriously worthy opponents in sight, she spends her time enjoying life. The Curse Arachnea's Curse, derived from her torture by the Harri Ezarri. Important Quotes ''Commonly used whenever imparts to her something she believes worthy of the phrase or something she did not know before '' ''Note the double meaning! '' ''Anyone who flaunts their powers or does an overly dramatic entrance. A truth to live by. You should listen to this sound advice. ''"*Rage*" - If she is really angry Relatives Arachnea's family is quite numerous, partially due to Rochnir. Yashimina deceased - Arachnea learned about half of what she knows from her. She died in the third battle against an enemy tribe of mahjarrat. Brontoneo deceased - Died along with his wife in the third battle against the Harri Ezarri. Ny'kal deceased - Generally known to be the best melee fighter of the coven. He survived the battles of Blasted Mountain, but was lost not much later in a struggle to protect what remained of his family against a dangerous Freneskraen beast. Yet'nit deceased - One of the few to survive the Harri Ezarri. She was moderately confused after Ny'kal's death and never completely regained her former strenght. Arachnea last saw her when she fled the Harri Ezarri's lair together with Amyina and Wyd. Xevoy deceased - Died tragically in a successful attempt to save what was left of his family, by sacrificing himself. Dyluneris deceased - Always wanted a mahjarrat son, and spoiled him horribly when he got one, eventually leading to the death of most of the family. Aranitus Aren Husband - What more can be said? He hates her. Z'Tubra deceased - Died, along with most other family, in the third battle against the Harri Ezarri. Arachnea married her to Gran'ina, a setup that proved to be good, but fatal as they stepped into their graves holding hands. Gran'ina deceased - Z'Tubra's husband. A much simpler man than Rochnir, enjoying the simple pleasures and battles of Freneskrae. Aylya deceased - Stillborn, and one of the saddest memories in Arachnea's life. Rochnir deceased - Arachnea's only son. He was widely regarded to be one of the most spoilt children around, and also well known for sleeping around every chance he got. Mukina deceased - Rochnir's unlucky wife. She was partially responsible for the war that broke out between Arachnea's family and the Harri Ezarri. Unnamed Mahjarrat - One of Rochnir's many conquests, more or less willingly. She was the actual cause for the war that destroyed Arachnea's family, and the third casualty claimed by the war. Brontoneo.png|Brontoneo, Arachnea's father Dyluneris.png|Dyluneris, Arachnea's first husband Aranitus V2.png|Aranitus Aren, Arachnea's spouse in Gielinor Thane Lich form.jpg|Xevoy, Arachnea's brother Z'Tubra.png|Z'Tubra, Arachnea's oldest daughter Thane Rejuvinated.png|Rad'on Amyina.png|Amyina Wyd.png|Wyd Amyina (Z'Tubra), deceased - Arachnea's dearest grandchild, a formidable battlemage and one of the five to survive the war with the Harri Ezarri. She escaped their enemy's lair along with Wyd and Yet'nit. Beyond that, what happened to her is as of yet unclear. Arweyl (Z'Tubra), deceased - Known for very little else than being the first one to die in the war between Arachnea's family and the Harri Ezarri. Akriney (Z'Tubra), deceased - A great healer, even for her relatively young age. She was kept out of the battles, but a sneak attack from behind in the final clash claimed her life along with many others. Rad'on (Rochnir), deceased - A particularly bloodthirsty boy who cared less about defending himself than dealing out damage. He perished in the second battle between Arachnea's family and the Harri Ezarri. Krr'nay (Rochnir), deceased - A surprising backthrow in the family, and a rather dreamy wizard. In battle, his defences were near unsurmountable, making him one of the last to fall in the final battle. Wyd (Rochnir), deceased - One of the very few to survive the war with the Harri Ezarri, and Rochnir's only "legal" child. She escaped the Harri Ezarri's camp along with Yet'nit and Amyina, leaving Arachnea behind. Pkn'ad (Rochnir), deceased - He whose birth sparked the war. Nobody really knows what became of him, but it is assumed he was murdered sometime during the second battle. Related Pages */Arachnea's Realm/ - The home of Arachnea. *Arachnea's Spellbook - Containing every spell she trusts to leave in a book. *Raising Fire Incarnate - One of the many books Arachnea has written herself. *Arachnea's Notes - Knowledge and opinion on mahjarrat, according to her. *Arachnea's Collections - The vault of things she has gathered or taken off defeated opponents. */A Thesis on Magic/ - Groundbreaking theories as to how magic works. */The tale of Blasted Mountain/ - A poem of Arachnea's origins Gallery Arachnea breaks the staff.png|Arachnea throwing her staff to the ground Arachnea mad.png|Summoning bats is a good way to confuse your enemies. Arachnea sitting.png|She sat a ways beyond the battlefield, unmoving. Arachnea old times.png|The time as Sage of Blasted Mountain Magic beam.png Arachnea in Freneskrae.png|On the road again, always traveling Barrows.png|Arachnea at the Barrows, inspecting the works of Sliske Arachnea Darkmeyer.png|Arachnea in Darkmeyer, questing for Blisterwood Trivia *Arachnea's current complementary selection of names and titles is ''Arachnea Luzern Achillea Anchusa Nocturne Vitex Fraxinelle Leontodon Fuchsia Lilac alba Lilium D'Umbrea Feu Aren Great Gigh Mistress of Shadow Magick, Overlord Teacher of the Ancient Magicks, Archmage of Enchantments, Honorary member of the Feu Vigilantis, Member of the Aren family, Grand Glyphiere of the Mahjarrat and Aren Archmage, Re-Founder of Aspera.'' *Arachnea is commonly classified as being a serious bitch. *Arachnea is among the oldest known mahjarrat walking Gielinor today. The time-counting of Freneskae is part mystery, hence why there is no closer information about her complete age. How does this happen? A wizard did it. (Another thing to remember in relation to this is that really old wizards don't get that old by being easy to kill.) *Arachnea is assumed to be infertile, which makes her less valuable in Ritual terms. *Arachnea is trapped in a spell that lasts as long as she lives; it contributes to keeping her alive far beyond even normal Mahjarratean lifespan by, in a way, reverting her age once she reaches a certain amount of years. In a way, her body reverts to that of a teenager at a time when usual mahjarrat would die of age. *Goes under the pseudonyms "Amanda Fisher", "Leila Kala Aren", "Arielle DeCiel" and simply "Aranea". *The idea to the name "Arachnea" originated taken from Alexader Wolkov's "Der gelbe Nebel", supposed to be a sequel to the famous Wizard of Oz. (The original is Arachna) *Arachnea's names have a meaning; ***Luzerne (Life) ***Achillea (War) ***Anchusa (Falsehood) ***Nocturna (Night) ***Vitex (Coldness) ***Fraxinelle (Fire) ***Leontodon (Oracle) ***Fuchsia (Frailty) ***Lilac alba Lilium (Youth, Majesty.) *"Leila Kala" means "Night Princess" Category:Characters Category:Ancient Magic user Category:Mage Category:Mahjarrat Category:Modern Magic user Category:Dark Magic user Category:Aren Category:Necromancers Category:Neutral Category:Female Category:Lunar Mages Category:Antagonist Category:Mysterious Characters Category:Magic Arachnea Category:Incomplete Articles Category:Lawful Category:Evil Category:Healer Category:Zarosian